An area of personal expertise essay
A topic in which I feel like I have some personal expertise would be ancient mythology. Sadly the past year I have been so busy that I have not had as much time reading about myths.Mythology has greatly influenced my decision in choosing history as the topic I would like to teach. Mythology has always influenced people through history. When I was young I loved to read stories about myths and legends and I still do. My dad used to have a tradition where he would read books aloud to my sister and I. The genre was mostly fantasy and I remember The Lord of The Rings and The Hobbit being among the first books. These books ignit Any time I see a book on ancient mythology I try and get it. I find the topic fascinating in part because no story is told the same way twice. There are so many versions of the same myth with each interpretation bringing a new twist to the story.
One of my favorite authors, JRR Tolkien had a quote in which he stated “After all, I believe that legends and myths are made of ‘truth’…” I strongly agree with this statement. All the stories had to come from something, or somewhere. The ancient Greeks used their stories like scripture, to tell the stories of their gods and how they acted in the mortal world. Myths have been recreated over time but had to originate somewhere. There had to be something that sparked the creation of these myths, some grain of truth hidden and perhaps lost as centuries takes their toll and causes the story to change from its original form.
It is also fascinating to note how different cultures can share the same mythological story. An event that has been interpreted in so many ways and changed over time. A perfect example of this is the Arc story. Noah and the Ark is, for all intents and purposes a myth. The Jewish version of the Arc story, found in the Torah isn't even the oldest version of the story. The oldest version of the story of an Ark and a great flood caused by angry gods is found in Gilgamesh when he finds the immortal Utnampishtam. Utnampishtam’s story tells of how the gods thought humans were too loud and decided to wipe them out via a great flood. One of the gods warns Utnampishtam, who then proceeds to build an Ark for animals and his family. When it is all over the gods are angry he survived but he receives a token, a necklace from one of the goddess showing that they will never bring humanity to destruction in this way again. While the elements are different, it is easy to see the similarities found between Noah’s story and this basic summary of the great flood found in Gilgamesh. The Ark story is perhaps one of the best connections to history and one of my favorites. I have others that are considered legends instead of ancient myths but the Ark story is amazing just because different cultures share it and change it according to their religious beliefs.
My knowledge of ancient mythology is sadly lacking when it comes to the Americas, as I have never really studied their myths. The reason for this being is it’s actually hard to find those myths as they are less well known and since many were never recorded. The regions of Europe have better preserved their mythology. This passion I have for mythology is what has made me decide to study history and eventually become a teacher. There is so much mystery and intrigue in the past that I just feel drawn towards it. The study of the past is also incredibly important because, no matter how cliché the phrase has become, if you don’t study the mistakes of the past, you will, without a doubt repeat them in the future. It is also important not to lose the knowledge of the past because it is the story of humanity and it should be remembered.
A topic in which I feel like I have some personal expertise would be ancient mythology. Sadly the past year I have been so busy that I have not had as much time reading about myths.Mythology has greatly influenced my decision in choosing history as the topic I would like to teach. Mythology has always influenced people through history. When I was young I loved to read stories about myths and legends and I still do. My dad used to have a tradition where he would read books aloud to my sister and I. The genre was mostly fantasy and I remember The Lord of The Rings and The Hobbit being among the first books. These books ignit Any time I see a book on ancient mythology I try and get it. I find the topic fascinating in part because no story is told the same way twice. There are so many versions of the same myth with each interpretation bringing a new twist to the story.
One of my favorite authors, JRR Tolkien had a quote in which he stated “After all, I believe that legends and myths are made of ‘truth’…” I strongly agree with this statement. All the stories had to come from something, or somewhere. The ancient Greeks used their stories like scripture, to tell the stories of their gods and how they acted in the mortal world. Myths have been recreated over time but had to originate somewhere. There had to be something that sparked the creation of these myths, some grain of truth hidden and perhaps lost as centuries takes their toll and causes the story to change from its original form.
It is also fascinating to note how different cultures can share the same mythological story. An event that has been interpreted in so many ways and changed over time. A perfect example of this is the Arc story. Noah and the Ark is, for all intents and purposes a myth. The Jewish version of the Arc story, found in the Torah isn't even the oldest version of the story. The oldest version of the story of an Ark and a great flood caused by angry gods is found in Gilgamesh when he finds the immortal Utnampishtam. Utnampishtam’s story tells of how the gods thought humans were too loud and decided to wipe them out via a great flood. One of the gods warns Utnampishtam, who then proceeds to build an Ark for animals and his family. When it is all over the gods are angry he survived but he receives a token, a necklace from one of the goddess showing that they will never bring humanity to destruction in this way again. While the elements are different, it is easy to see the similarities found between Noah’s story and this basic summary of the great flood found in Gilgamesh. The Ark story is perhaps one of the best connections to history and one of my favorites. I have others that are considered legends instead of ancient myths but the Ark story is amazing just because different cultures share it and change it according to their religious beliefs.
My knowledge of ancient mythology is sadly lacking when it comes to the Americas, as I have never really studied their myths. The reason for this being is it’s actually hard to find those myths as they are less well known and since many were never recorded. The regions of Europe have better preserved their mythology. This passion I have for mythology is what has made me decide to study history and eventually become a teacher. There is so much mystery and intrigue in the past that I just feel drawn towards it. The study of the past is also incredibly important because, no matter how cliché the phrase has become, if you don’t study the mistakes of the past, you will, without a doubt repeat them in the future. It is also important not to lose the knowledge of the past because it is the story of humanity and it should be remembered.